Fredag 2.august
Our Swedish friends from Europe are on the road with Deep Purple by way of support in Bergen on 3 August, so it was perfectly natural for them to step in and step up when TNT had to pull out of the wind-down slot on Friday 2 August at Notodden Blues Festival. “Wind-down slot”. Well, no.
The undersigned has seen Europe a few times and has been consistently impressed by the standard of the playing and the commitment of the performance. Their set was never going to be anything other than strong, high energy, full power. In fact, it was one of the highest energy performances from this band. It may have been their current touring set or a version of it, but it did not show any signs of being overplayed.
The start was explosive, a strong opener in “On Broken Wings”. Joey Tempest was at the front of the stage immediately, John Norum’s first solo was busy, almost frantic and Ian Haugland’s drumming was as tight as hell. This set the bar rather high for the rest of the evening. They were clearly not mucking about. Having been given the chance to follow Deep Purple, a band explicitly acknowledged as some of their heroes when they were starting out, this was a privilege they were not going to pass up.
Next, it was time for the obligatory singalong with “Rock The Night”. The crowd that had stayed on for them, though a little thinner than before, were in full voice. It’s early for a singalong, but it works to ramp up the atmosphere, and Tempest knows what he is doing. John Norum then put in the obligatory blues-laced guitar solo and we’re up and running nicely, though the vocals needed a bit of a tweak for level after the first number.
“Walk The Earth” was next. This number always makes a powerful contribution to their sets and is a personal favourite of the undersigned, especially when used as the opener. The guitar was foregrounded in the mix, which gave the song a slightly different feel than usual. Tempest’s vocals hadn’t been at their finest to this point, but in the softer passages in the pre-chorus, they were soft, rich, sonorous. A flawless outing for this one, this time, which the audience greeted with substantial applause.
Then something happened – something shifted. “Scream Of Anger” was next and it was easily the fastest performance of this number the undersigned has ever heard, live or in recorded concerts. John Levén on bass had his first real stand-out moment here, nimble fingers flying along with the increased tempo. This was a fantastic performance of a set staple, really rocking. It worked well, but the increase in pace carried forward into the pieces that followed, even through the more gentle, lyrical, earnest “Sign Of The Times” which was next, with its delicate piano introduction by Mic Michaeli, full of flourish and a good dose of pop sensibilities.
“Hold Your Head Up”, the single for the album slated for later this year, followed, and Tempest reminded the crowd that the band had been touring to celebrate their 40th birthday. Again, the Deep Purple influence was apparent. As you might expect for the latest material, it was well rehearsed, with really tight ensemble playing. Norum put in another very nice bluesy solo, spot on in style for the theme of festival. We might have slowed for “Carrie” next, an obvious fan favourite, but we were still a little over the usual tempo. Still, Norum absolutely nailed the solo, played straight and with real feeling. Tempest crossed his arms over his chest – he was genuinely moved by the crowd’s engagement, as they sang along. His voice had begun to warm up in a performance that might have showed some strain from being so late in the evening, and it was warm and sonorous at the close of the piece.
“War of Kings” arrived with the resounding tone of the horn, and Levén brought in the main riff, edgy, fluid, and really quite fast. Norum’s solo was dazzling, all the more for the pace of the set, and Haugland’s closing fills sent it off with a flourish. The band ought to have been a roll at this point, but the momentum of the set rather caught up with them for the closing numbers. “Stormwind” and “Open Your Heart” both felt rushed, Tempest struggling for room to articulate the words and Haugland fluffing his lines, and the connection between the members of the band seemed to slip. “More Than Meets The Eye”, with its authentic 1980s synth sounds was a curious addition to the set and Tempest again had to catch his breath. They recovered somewhat for “Last Look At Eden”, as the more stately, imposing pace of the piece was able to steady the ship. The guitar solo was still a little harried, but the piece overall was strong and gave Tempest time to put in his best vocal performance of the evening, perhaps because the melody fit more into a comfortable range for after midnight on a quickly cooling Friday night.
I think we were all a little out of breath by the time we reached the encore with the inevitable “The Final Countdown”. The audience who had decided to stay had indeed stayed to the end and the atmosphere at the end was every bit as frenetic as the second half of the set.
All in all, there can be no doubt that Europe were the best possible “stand in” act we could have asked for and very much the right fit with Deep Purple who had come before them. Not the best performance they have ever put in, but the numbers were strong enough to carry us all along, even if it was breakneck speed. 4.5/6
Text: Alex Maines
Photography: Anne-Marie Forker
